Press Release May 15, 2002

21st Century Solutions Designed To Meet 21st Century Challenges

Cognet~X, Inc.: American Home Products Co. Offers Best Pull-through Programs for Managed Care Customers

FEASTERVILLE---(May 15, 2002)---Influential managed care pharmacy directors ranked American Home Products Co. as the best provider of pull-through programs in the pharmaceutical industry, according to Cognet~X, Inc. research.

American Home Products placed first in the first-quarter 2002 ranking period of the twice-yearly Corporate Assessment Total Rankings component of Cognet~X's PAR-Rx (Promotional Assessment Research) Report™. The company, which promotes through its Wyeth division, had ranked fourth in the previous reporting cycle in 3Q 2001.

Pull-through programs are pharmaceutical company initiatives designed to increase the market share of specific products while reducing pharmaceutical expenditures for managed care organizations.

AHP won praise for the ease at which it customized pull-through programs for individual managed care plans and for its sales force organization's ability to effectively carry a strategic message to managed care providers such as physicians, PAR-Rx panelists told Cognet~X.

Among pharmacy directors' comments about the AHP effort:

"They are willing to work with managed care organizations to customize approaches based on individual client situations. Wyeth also has standard items, which they position as possible add-ons. The Wyeth organization is efficient at evaluating and acting on pull-through proposals."

"Willing to assist where needed with pull-through efforts. Good sales force."

Aventis Pharma AG, which had placed first in the 3Q 2001 Pull-through Program assessment, took second place in the most recent period, with panelists acknowledging Aventis Pharmaceuticals' personnel as "empowered" and "easy to work with."

"Aventis is equipped to support programs from start to finish," commented one PAR-Rx respondent.

Novartis Pharmaceutical Corp. placed third, holding onto its Pull-through Programs ranking position from the previous Corporate Assessment period.

"We received great support from all levels of the company (management and sales)," one panelist told Cognet~X. Said another, "Novartis is willing to try different things and meet or beat our deadlines."

Two corporations gained significant ground in this category between the third quarter of 2001 and the first quarter of this year. AstraZeneca PLC's ranking rose from 10th place to fifth place.

For Johnson & Johnson, the climb was even more dramatic: from below the top 10 (15th) in 3Q 2001 to ninth in the most recent period.

The top10 corporations for Pull-through Programs in the 1Q 2002 Corporate Assessment ranking period were as follows:

1. American Home Products Co.
2. Aventis Pharma AG
3. Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp.
4. TAP Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
5. AstraZeneca PLC
6. GlaxoSmithKline
7. Pharmacia Corp.
8. Merck & Co., Inc.
9. Johnson & Johnson
10. Forest Laboratories, Inc.

About the PAR-Rx Report

Cognet~X's PAR-Rx Report is a year-round service that provides the pharmaceutical industry with real-time, Internet-based competitive intelligence on pharmaceutical company promotion to influential managed care pharmacy directors.

The Report offers Cognet~X clients the ability to evaluate and analyze variable differences that are critically important to their decision-making process. The Report collects comprehensive data that can be segmented and analyzed to provide clients with "21st-Century solutions to their 21st-Century challenges."

About Cognet~X

Cognet~X offers the pharmaceutical industry market research, consulting and software development that help companies build and refine their relationships with numerous customer bases, including the managed care community. Based in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, Cognet~X is privately held and employee-owned.

For more information on the PAR-Rx Report or other valuable Cognet~X products, please contact Robert E. Houghton (extension 101) at (215) 396-8300 or via e-mail at robh@cognetx.com.

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